“We had to phase out temporary work at almost all locations and therefore changed course at the turn of the year,” said Volkswagen-Chief Human Resources Officer Gunnar Kilian of the German Press Agency. Plants like Emden are already geared towards two shifts instead of three shifts at VW.
Works council chief Daniela Cavallo emphasized: “We have full order books. But the semiconductors are missing. That doesn’t go together and it’s difficult to bear.”
At the headquarters, VW cuts the night shifts on three of four important lines in the spring. The reason is the continuing lack of electronics. Last year, 330,000 fewer vehicles were built in Wolfsburg. The almost 400,000 cars manufactured are a low since 1958.
In addition to financial compensation for lost shift bonuses, the employee representatives are demanding a reorganized procurement of central supplier parts. According to Cavallo, some companies are further ahead than VW in securing sufficient quantities. “Certainly a lot has happened. We have the semiconductor supply task force. But it’s also about building up a strategic, long-term supply management system – not just for microchips, by the way.”
Kilian said about the negotiations about the shift cuts: “This is not an easy discussion that we are in right now.” However, there is “a great interest on both sides in giving the workforce clarity about the new shift models as quickly as possible”. The restructuring cannot be averted overall, explained the group HR manager: “If we cannot achieve the corresponding production volumes, as is currently the case due to the semiconductor crisis, we must act. Because in the end it is also about maintaining competitiveness and thus about job security. “